Lying in anchor
We must sail sometimes with the wind and sometimes against it, but we must sail, and not drift nor lie at anchor. In my article titled ‘Time to tackle manpower dearth in the hospitality industry’ published way back in April 2013, I pointed out that the time for pontification is over. The industry is hemorrhaging workers at all levels and increasingly there is talk of looking to an overseas workforce to staff the frontlines of our industry. Truth be told – we have not missed-the-boat; instead we have allowed it to simply lie too long in anchor.
Tourist arrivals to the country kept improving, a flood of new hotels opened whilst several others are in build. Yet, for all the impressive growth the industry is undergoing despite the April 2019 setback and the coronavirus threat, productivity rates are low. High staff turnover rates and recruitment competition from other sectors are definitely hindering the success of the hospitality and tourism industry. The initial challenge is to succeed in presenting hospitality and tourism as an attractive place to work. This involves providing clearer career pathways and attracting the 'right' people into the industry. Hospitality and tourism are service industries, so attracting young people who are passionate about customer service is imperative.
The Tourist Hotels Association of Sri Lanka (THASL) sometime ago, conducted some tourism awareness programmes for A/L Students. THASL’s laudable efforts alone may have not been sufficient. It is time that the member hotels also take it upon themselves to embark upon similar initiatives to spread the message fast and wide! It must not only complement the overall effort but be creative in action.
An excellent example is the ‘Succeed through Service’ programme launched by Ritz-Carlton in Dubai as a part of the company’s global youth engagement programme. The hotel invited students from a nearby International School to participate in a programme designed to teach children valuable life skills and help them forge a path to success in the future. The full-day event had year 9 students’ complete sessions with members of the Ritz-Carlton Community Footprints team. The day started with a healthy eating and safe food handling session with the executive chef. Students were taught the importance of a balanced diet and food hygiene whilst learning how to make healthy food. As well as cooking in the kitchens, students took part in a team building workshop that included making up a bed in one of the guest rooms in small groups.
After their time in the Kitchen and guestroom, students learned about every day skills such as how to read a water meter. Students were also taught essential energy saving tips to apply around the house. In the process, these youngsters were exposed to some of the hotel’s ‘best practices’ thus igniting the thought process of making a career in the hotel industry. This innovative and fun-filled programme was both interactive and interesting…decidedly, more exciting than the usually mundane ‘chalk and talk’ session ending with a quick tour of the hotel and/or a cookery demonstration.
Another way of showing young Sri Lankans some of the career opportunities available to them in the hotel industry is for the Ministry of Tourism to organise a ‘Careers fair’. A recruitment, education and training focused event that involves the participation of all majorhotels in Sri Lanka primarily aimed to prepare and educate youngsters to work in the sector.
Shafeek Wahab – Editor, Hospitality Sri Lanka, Consultant, Trainer, Ex-Hotelier. |
|
|
|
